Bach - The Well Tempered Clavier 48 Preludes and Fugues / Hewitt, MacGregor, Demidenko, Gavrilow

Starring:Andrei Gavrilov, Angela Hewitt, Joanna MacGregor, Nikolai Demidenko
Studio: Image Entertainment
Product Type: DVD

Editorial Review:
Amazon.com
This is a fresh, visually and musically fascinating approach to one of music history's key compositions, Bach's Well-Tempered Clavier. There is room for many approaches to this music, including keyboard instruments other than the piano and a variety of performing styles, but this is, on the whole, as satisfactory a recorded presentation as the music has had. All four pianists are first-class artists, and preference for one or another is a matter of personal taste. The DVD set preserves the original BBC format, in which each set of prelude and fugue has opening and closing credits and a short spoken introduction, some more valuable than others. Nikolai Demidenko's segment, in the Palazzo Labia, Venice, has interesting views of the city. For Andrei Gavrilov at the New Art Gallery in Walsall, England; Joanna MacGregor in the Palau Guell in Barcelona; and Angel Hewitt at Die Warburg in Eisenach, Germany, the camera rarely wanders outside the room. One curious touch: after Hewitt mentions Bach's children, several semitransparent children wander silently through the room, looking like ghosts.

Amazon.com

This is a fresh, visually and musically fascinating approach to one of music history's key compositions, Bach's Well-Tempered Clavier. There is room for many approaches to this music, including keyboard instruments other than the piano and a variety of performing styles, but this is, on the whole, as satisfactory a recorded presentation as the music has had. All four pianists are first-class artists, and preference for one or another is a matter of personal taste. The DVD set preserves the original BBC format, in which each set of prelude and fugue has opening and closing credits and a short spoken introduction, some more valuable than others. Nikolai Demidenko's segment, in the Palazzo Labia, Venice, has interesting views of the city. For Andrei Gavrilov at the New Art Gallery in Walsall, England; Joanna MacGregor in the Palau Guell in Barcelona; and Angel Hewitt at Die Warburg in Eisenach, Germany, the camera rarely wanders outside the room. One curious touch: after Hewitt mentions Bach's children, several semitransparent children wander silently through the room, looking like ghosts.

The 48 masterpieces of The Well-Tempered Clavier look far into the future by promoting tuning adjustments that liberated keyboard music, making possible the greater freedom of the classical and romantic styles that went far beyond baroque practices. --Joe McLellan

Description

The 48 Preludes and Fugues from Johann Sebastian Bach are regarded as the "Old Testament" of piano literature. To commemorate the 250th anniversary of the death of the master composer, four pianists each perform 12 Preludes and Fugues from selected locations in Barcelona, Venice, Oxford and Bach's birthplace, Eisenach.

Customer Reviews:

Mixed performances of Bach's studies.......2007-02-16

Nikolai Demidenko offers an utterly colorless performance, while Joanna Macgregor and Angela Hewitt are pretty good. Andrej Gavrilov is so-so.

Must have in collection..........2006-03-14

Those who love Bach and possibly the greatest masterpiece
for the pianoforte, the Well Tempered Clavier will find this to be a gem. 4 different players each with different
styles, contrasting each other. There was good
balance of focus on the hands and other parts
of the body. Personally I found Demidenko's
and Hewitt's performances to be superb. Hewitt's
interpretation of the P&F #14 in F# minor worth
listening to...

Macgregor review.......2005-12-17

Having previously heard these recordings, I felt forced to buy this DVD for the sole purpose of experiencing the brllliance of of the Macgregor interpretations.(she does not yet have her own recordings of the WTC yet). I felt that there was nothing memorable in the other artist's recordings. But I reckon that her interpretations of the fugues in a minor,b major and b minor are unsurpassed. It is a pity that this is not on CD (yet).

The right combination......5 stars.......2004-10-31

You can't please everyone. The various reviews below show that. But having read them and seen the entire 2-DVD set I'd make the following reactions to previous comments.

1) The four artists represent diversity. If you like laid-back sneekers and Blue Jeans you'll have that. If you like an artist to dress with class, its here as well.

2) There is a perfect balance of showing hands, faces, interior/exterior room/building shots. Fluid and imaginative camera work enhance this production. Those who want nothing but "show me the fingers" should go to the artist's workshop or masterclass and hold a camcorder over their shoulder. This production is completely well-balanced in showing hands, fading to facial expressions, room interiors etc.

3) The performances are inpeccable. But I have to admit that I was surprised that the first artist, and some of the 2nd, read from the music. So the first artist seems to be "playing" the pieces as he reads the music. There's none of that from the 2nd DVD (Book 2) and so these two are actually "performing" the pieces which leads to a much more free and expresive rendition.

4) The contraversal comments/credits between each piece:
It's good to have the break between pieces. But whether you agree with that format or not should in no way keep you from purchasing this extrordinary collection.

A great insight into Bach through contrasting renditions.......2004-08-11

The pianists' comments before each piece helped to diffuse a little of the mystery that typically surrounds such musicians. Often, when listening to a musician play, I wonder what goes on in her mind. Is it some arcane thought process that produces this beautiful rendition? Or does she have the same ideas that I do (and I just don't have the skill to
translate it through the instrument)?
I thought that there was just the right balance between showing the pianists' hands and their surroundings. I don't need to see musicians' hands 100 percent of the time. Often
the music is enough.

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